Arch-support



A. E. BLOCK.

ARCH SUPPORT.

APPLICATION FILED Aue.22, 191B- Patented May 17, 1921.

UNITED STA'EES PATENT oF IcE."

ALEXANDER' E. BLOCK, 0]? ST. LOUIS, -MISSO'lll'lzlill.

ARCH-SUPPORT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. May 1'7, 1921.

Application filed August 22, 1918. Serial No. 250,959.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXAN ER E. BLOCK, a citizen of the United States,residing at St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Arch-Supports, of which the following is aspecification, reference being-had therein to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates to improvements in arch supports and has for itsobject to provide a support for the treatment or relief of either of thearches of the human foot, having facilities for increasing the thicknessof the support at any point beneath either arch.

In the drawings- Figure 1 is a bottom plan view of a structure embodyingmy invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the fore-part of the same.

Fig. 3 is a similar sectional view of that part of the support situatebeneath the 10mgitudinal arch of the wearer.

Fig. 4 embraces a plan View and a side elevation of one of the inserts15. v

Fig. 5 is a plan View of one of the inserts 12.

As illustrated, I employ a flexible insole 10 whose contour is indicatedin Fig. 1, and whose lower face is provided with a perforate strip orfabric 11 whereon one or more of the inserts 12 (having projectingpoints or prongs 13-13) may be secured as shown, the bottom inserthaving its prongs 13-13 stuck into or through the fabric 11 to provideagainst displacement in use and to hold the insert in the desiredposition relative to the insole 10 when in use. Above such bottom insert12, like inserts 12'may be added as shown in Figs. '1 and 3, theirprongs 13-13 projecting into the body-of that one of the inserts 12which is next beneath it; all of said inserts (12 and, 15) beingconstructed of perforate material.

In suitable relation to the line of anterior metatarsal arch of thewearer the strap 14 is disposed beneaththe insole 10 as shown in Figs. 1and 2, to accommodate inserts 15, which are held in position and againstdisplacement in use by the prong 16 with which each of the inserts 15 isprovided, which prong 16 is pushed into or through'the materialcomposing the body of the strap 14 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The inserts 12 and 15 will be so contoured as to meet the requirementsfor which they are used, and to produce the desired elevation of theinsole 10 (which is made of any suitable flexible material) at the pointwhere the arch under treatment requires support. The inserts 15 may bemounted one upon the other if desired, just as the inserts 12 are shownso mounted in Fig. 3.

The inserts 12 and 15 are capable of a Wide latitude of adjustmentwithin the' limits of the strip 11 and strap 14,. and the prongs 13-16may be of such length as to be forced into the inner face'of the sole ofEhe shoe by the pressure of the wearers oot.

The parts shown in the illustrative embodiment of my invention may bevaried in form without departing from the spirit of my invention, whichembraces broadly the holding of an insert in place beneath an insole bymeans carried by the insert only and adapted to secure the inserts to aperforate holding member mounted .beneath the insole; the same meansbeing adapted to secure the inserts to each other when mounted one abovethe other.

The prongs 13-16 are adapted to be seated in the strips 11-14, or intothe body of an insert other than the ones by which they are carried, bypressure alone.

The prongs 13-16 are of a. length greater than the thickness of eitherthe strips 11-14 or the inserts 12-15, so as to extend entirely througheither such strips or inserts, to enable the prong to project through astrip into the sole, or through an insert'into another insert, as shownin Figs. 2 and 3.

. Having thus described my invention, what I claim asnew and desire tohave secured to me by the grant of Letters Patent, is-

2. In an arch support, an insole; a. perfo- 7 rable strip secured at itsends to the lower face of said insole; and a plurality of perforableinserts each having a prong adapted to be seated by pressure in anotherlnsert or in said strip.

3. An arch support comprising an insole;

a perforable strip secured at its ends upon the lower face of saidinsole; and an insert having prongs of greater length than the thicknessof said strip, said prongs extendlng v through said strip and into theinner face of the sole of the shoe wherein said arch 5 support is used.

4. In an arch support, an insole; a perforable strip secured at its endsto the lower face of said insole; and a plurality of perforable insertseach having a prong of a length greater than the thickness of theinserts and I signature.

ALEXANDER E. BLOCK

